RALEIGH, N.C. — When Republican Pat McCrory ran for North Carolina governor four years ago, he tried to prod then-Democratic Lt. Gov. Beverly Perdue to make more joint appearances with him beyond their televised debates.
This time, it is the Democratic nominee — Lt. Gov. Walter Dalton — who is calling for more joint appearances. Dalton is preparing for a race against the better-funded McCrory, who is seeking the office again.
Dalton had to scramble to ramp up his lieutenant governor's campaign to governor after Perdue, who narrowly beat McCrory in 2008, abruptly announced this year she wouldn't seek re-election. On Monday, Dalton called on McCrory to commit to eight debates over the next four months in their general election race.
"North Carolina is at a crossroads and the people deserve a straightforward discussion on the future of our state," Dalton said. "I invite Pat McCrory to tell us what he stands for and commit to joining me at these debates."
The turnabout reflects the flipped fortunes of McCrory and the two parties in what's expected to be an expensive six-month general election race to succeed Perdue. Libertarian Barbara Howe is also running.
McCrory, a former Charlotte mayor, is the perceived front-runner this time, having easily won the GOP nomination last week over five lesser-known candidates. While McCrory has amassed a significant war chest, Dalton had to devote resources to a hard-fought primary battle over former U.S. Rep. Bob Etheridge and other candidates.
McCrory wants debates but didn't immediately agree to Dalton's proposal of two a month from June through September on community college campuses, in addition to expected fall TV debates.
Instead, the McCrory campaign used the opportunity to bash Dalton's activities. Dalton campaign manager Caroline Valand then sent a letter to McCrory's campaign as if the Republican had already agreed to the debates, but McCrory's camp responded it "won't be showing up for Mr. Dalton's trumped up, dream schedule of debates on his terms."
McCrory said in an interview later Monday that his campaign has received many debate offers but didn't anticipate they would all occur as Dalton had proposed.
"I welcome debates, and debates where we're allowed to have some discussion," he said.
The themes of the two campaigns are starting to take shape.
Republicans contend that Dalton is part of the Democratic establishment that includes Perdue and that has run North Carolina into the ground with poor public education outcomes, high taxes and high unemployment.
Dalton is seeking to link McCrory to the Republican-controlled Legislature, which Dalton says approved a budget that reduced education spending and weakened protections for women.
Dalton said Monday the "town hall"-style debates would give voters the chance to listen to a straightforward discussion on North Carolina 's future in addition to traditional televised debates in the fall.
Democratic candidate for North Carolina governor, Lt. Gov. Walter Dalton, speaks to his supporters at Royal Banquet and Conference Center in Raleigh, N.C., Tuesday, May 8, 2012. Dalton edged former U.S. Rep. Bob Etheridge on Tuesday in the Democratic primary for North Carolina governor, setting up a general election race with Republican Pat McCrory, who lapped the rest of the GOP field in his primary. (AP Photo/The News & Observer, Takaaki Iwabu)
"This Legislature, with Pat McCrory's encouragement, has limited opportunities," said Dalton, who asserted McCrory has declined to criticize the General Assembly except for holding some late-night sessions.
McCrory said Monday that his influence in Raleigh was being oversold by Dalton.
"I did not realize I had so much political power running the state when I've not been in political office the past two years," McCrory quipped. He added that he's "not running for the Legislature. I'm running for governor."
The state GOP has unveiled a website calling Dalton "Bev Perdue Part 2." It asserts that the two top executive branch officials voted together more than 98 percent of the time when they were both in the state Senate in the late 1990s.
Dalton, a Rutherfordton attorney, said such statistics are misleading because the General Assembly approves most bills by wide margins. The governor and lieutenant governor also are elected independently by the voters, Dalton said.
"We're never been a team ticket," Dalton told reporters Saturday in Greensboro. He said voters can examine his own record. "I'm Walter Dalton. I'm Walter 1, not Perdue 2," he said.
The state Democratic Party on Monday rolled out its own new website, raising questions about McCrory's business and political connections since he last ran for governor.
Andy Taylor, a political science professor at North Carolina State University, said McCrory is better positioned to portray himself as an agent of change. But Taylor said Dalton will be able to claim he would represent the last line of defense against extreme policies coming from Republican legislative leaders or otherwise "there will be nothing stopping them from (running) public education into the ground."
While McCrory's campaign begins with a significant cash edge over Dalton, the lieutenant governor has been a strong fundraiser and should benefit from the get-out-the-vote effort associated with President Barack Obama's push to win North Carolina.
The Republican Governors Association already has helped bring in governors from other states to headline McCrory fundraising events. The RGA's political committee for North Carolina spent more than $5 million during the final months of the 2008 campaign helping McCrory, according to state campaign reports.
The RGA said it would begin on Tuesday running an ad in three TV markets accusing Dalton of being "Bev Perdue's right-hand man," backing policies that have led to high unemployment and high taxes.
"I think there is no doubt that North Carolina is one of the top pick-up opportunities for Republicans," spokesman Mike Schrimpf said.
The Democratic Governors Association, of which Perdue is vice-chairwoman, is also expected to target North Carolina. A DGA event in Charlotte was supposed to raise $2 million for the party's gubernatorial candidates nationwide.
"We remain very committed to winning that race," spokesman Mark Giangreco wrote in an e-mail. "The RGA is not going to be only team on the field for very long."